Impossible
by srsbnsbro
Summary: Samus has a crush that can never be... A tale of an impossible, difficult love. SheikxSamus. RATING MAY CHANGE
1. Chapter 1

I don't remember when it started, I honestly don't. This intoxicating thing I feel… for him. I think it may have been that day, two months ago, though it seems like much longer, when I was in the training room.

I had made three Level 9 versions of myself to fight. I'd been feeling in a rut around that time, like I wasn't getting any better, and I wanted to challenge myself to impress the Master. I had defeated two of myself twice and the other copy of me three times, and I was feeling good. My lungs burned, and I felt the sweat trickling down my body. I wasn't wearing my suit, just because it had gotten too hot.

I was in Picto-Chat, and I had jumped onto the clock hand slowly ticking around. A copy followed me, and when I attempted to jump away, I tripped and hit my chin on the ground. My teeth pierced my lower lip and it began bleeding instantly. I put my hand to my lips in shock, and then suddenly, the three copies had surrounded me. Electric whips were flying, kicks and punches and blasts from my gun hit me so fast there was no way to get away, even if I did have any energy left. My damage had to be over 150%. One blow would have me flying into that shocking white, and back to the waiting area for training. Master Hand was surely watching me, disappointed. If I weren't as stubborn, I'd have cried.

And then there he was, out of nowhere. Graceful punches and kicks at 90 mph. The clones didn't stand a chance. All at once, he high-kicked all three of them out of the room. They disappeared with cries and bright light, and before they could spawn again, he spoke.

"Quit." His words were soft, but his voice was commanding. As soon as the words left his lips, the scenery around us fell away, like tiles. When the arena had gone, we were left in a plain black room with no windows and one handle-less door. From behind him, I admired his graceful figure. The almost-masculine shoulders and slender but muscular legs and arms. Slight hips. I tried not to look at his butt, but I was on the ground and he was standing up and I couldn't help sneaking a few glances. He turned to me and caught my eye, and I was afraid he had caught me staring, but he offered me a hand.

I stared at it, not understanding what he was doing, so after a few seconds he knelt and grabbed my forearms, rising to stand and bringing me with him. We were of the same height, perhaps I was a bit taller, but that didn't change much. He pulled something from a concealed pocket and reached towards my face. Instinctively, I flinched. He pawed at my chin, wiping the blood away. After he was satisfied, he placed the handkerchief in my hand and walked away.

"Thanks-" I started, but he was already out the door, his blond braid swinging behind him. Before I left, I remember standing there for something close to 15 minutes. Somewhere in that chunk off time, my lip opened up again, and I got blood all down my blue jumpsuit, but I was thinking too deeply to care. My heart was pounding, and for some reason, a few hot tears slipped down my cheek. I quickly wiped them away and studied the droplets on the back of my hand, sniffling. The door swung open while I was thinking, and Ike and Marth walked in, laughing about something.

"Oh, Samus, hi," Ike said, his smile shrinking a bit on his face as the joke faded. "What are you doing, just standing there?"

I didn't say anything back. I couldn't have said anything; my mouth felt swollen and heavy, like it would be a struggle to open it. I took a few heavy steps forward, then walked at a hasty pace through the door, bumping both boys' shoulders on my way.

"What's with her?" I heard Marth say before I turned the corner in the hallway and broke into a run, heading straight for my room in the Manor.

I remember sleeping for days after it happened. Snake and R.O.B. had both come to see me, but Peach turned them away. I never thanked her for protecting me. I should have, because I don't know what I would have done without her.

It wasn't like I hadn't seen him before. I watched him fight alongside his… alongside Link. As much as I hate to admit it, they made a wonderful team. Regardless, I knew. I knew that he was really she, and she had Link and he had her. He had her and I didn't and it killed me.

I know that most of the guys in the house had a little thing for me. It was obvious in the way the acted about me. The snickers when I walked in front of them without my armor. The overt glances they think I don't notice. And I really do like guys, I do. But with Sheik it's different. It has to be difficult for us. Or, for me rather, because he has no idea I even exist. He… _she_ already has everything she needs, and I'm not included in that.

Sometimes I wonder why I even try.


	2. Chapter 2

I awake in my room when the lights are still off. A dim light is shining through the window, so I roll over and take my alarm clock off of the nightstand to check the time.

4:49 AM.

I sigh and flip the covers off of my legs, swinging them to the side of my bed. I rise slowly, my body aching. Even after "the Sheik Incident", as I'd dubbed it, I continued to train a lot. Yesterday was a particularly straining session involving a Pit copy, a Sonic copy, a Snake copy, and way too many Smash balls. I rub my shoulder and walk to the door, not bothering to go into my closet and change out of my oversized sleep-shirt.

I walk down the cold, quiet, and empty hallways without running into anyone else. I stub my toe on an empty capsule rolling around on the floor, but my mind is too tired to register the pain, so I keep walking to the kitchen. Technically, we're not supposed to just walk in and get our own food, but it's five in the morning, I'm tired and I want food.

The kitchen's lights are off, so I walk around in the dark for a few minutes, groping the walls for a light switch. Once I finally find one, the lights flash brightly and I grunt, covering my eyes with my arm. After a few moments, my eyes adjust and I lower my arm. Standing in front of me is a sleepy and nightgown-clad Zelda.

"Samus? What are you doing here this early in the morning, and by yourself?" She yawns mid-sentence. I study her. Her voice is considerably higher than it is when she's _him_, and she's wearing some ridiculous, pink flowery thing. She scratches her back, causing the skirt to lift a bit and I feel my ears get hot. I touch one, and sure enough, my ears are probably nice and red right now. Great.

"I could ask you the same thing." I say quietly, crossing my arms, and offering her a small, forced smile. Smiling in front of her kills me.

"Yeah, well…" She trailed off, waving her hand limply in the air and laughing lightly. I gulp and feel my heart skip a beat. I clear my throat and run a hand through my long blond hair, which is down right now.

"Um, well, I came down here because I was hungry, and I was going to make myself a bowl of cereal. Do you want some?" I forced out, gesturing to the cabinet. I'm an idiot! She knows where the cereal is. She lives here too, in case I haven't noticed.

"Oh, uh, okay. I just came for some water, but now that you've brought it up, I guess I would like some." She smiles and me and I feel a blush threatening to creep onto my face. I turn quickly and rush to get the bowls and spoons set out, my back to Zelda the whole time. I get out Cookie Crisp (my secret favorite) and fill both of our bowls.

I turn around to get the milk and I come nearly nose-to-nose with Sheik, who is now wearing a wife-beater and plaid pajama pants. My eyes widen, but I clamp my mouth shut to avoid any embarrassing noises from slipping through my lips. We stand there, so close to each other, for several seconds. I feel sweat starting to form on my top lip. After a moment of not knowing what to do, I attempt to step around him.

"Excuse-," I start to sidestep him, but he grabs my wrist. His grip is firm, but not painful. I slowly raise my head to look into his brilliant red eyes.

"… Anything you want to say to me?" He looks at me, peers into my heart, and suddenly it hits me. He knows. Sheik's known this whole time and now he wants me to say it. I keep his gaze, but tears are welling in my eyes. If I don't get away fast, they'll spill over and he will see me cry. I try to move away, and his grip tightens, pulling me back.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Now, do you want any cereal or what?" I say looking away, taking a deep breath. I have to calm down, control myself. What is happening right now?

"… Tell me. Please. There's something up with you and I know it's because of me." His voice is soft, not demanding or angry at all. In some ways, that just makes it worse. I put my hand around the slender hand grabbing my wrist. For some reason, I just feel like it's the right thing to do, and Sheik doesn't move it, so I let it rest there.

"It's nothing. I promise." I look deep into his eyes, but I can't read his expression in them. The tone of my voice must have clued him in to the fact that I wasn't planning to tell him what my problem was anytime soon. His eyes soften, and he squeezes my wrist reassuringly. I look away and walk over to the fridge to get the milk. Sheik doesn't stop me.

"Actually, I'm not hungry," He says suddenly, and I turn around, milk jug in hand. "Just… give my bowl to Pit. He's walking down the hallway now, and he sounds hungry." Sheik dashes out the door, and seconds later a very sleepy Pit walks in.

"Oh, hey Samus! Is anyone else having that cereal?" He asks nonchalantly, scratching the back of his head and yawning. Suddenly, a horrible rage comes over me, and I storm to the cereal bowls, messily pouring milk into both portions of cereal. I screw on the lid and slam the jug down onto the black counter. Growling, I pick up both bowls, and on my way out of the room, I shove Pit's into his unprepared hands, effectively spilling milk all over his bare chest.

"Hey!" he cries in surprise, but I'm already around the corner.

I sit in the dining room, eating my Cookie Crisp in the dark, just in case anyone were to walk in. I don't want people to see me cry.


	3. Chapter 3

Today is a Brawl day, which means we all wake up early, put on our best or favorite fighting attire, and head to the Brawl room to fight it out under Master Hand's command.

I never feel like wearing my suit anymore, but Ike told me the other day that there would be Smash Balls, so I wake up early to suit up fully.

Today, I'm in a green mood, so I put on my green suit and armor. It takes longer than usual, which is probably why I've stopped wearing my full attire recently, so I end up having to rush to make it to the doors on time. My metallic boots pound hard against the floor and my breathing picks up. When nothing else works, running always manages to make everything fade away. It's like an out-of-body experience, like I'm watching myself run from high above myself, just floating.

"Where the hell is Samus?" I hear Snake growl, and suddenly I'm back in my suit, running through the halls of the Smash House.

"I'm coming, just wait!" I say, turning the last corner and holding out my arm without the blaster on it. I hear someone mumble something, and everyone standing by the door laughs. I feel my face heat up and I lower my arm, slowing so I don't crash right into anyone. "Shut up."

"Whatever! Jeez, chill out, lady," Sonic says. "We're just playin'," And suddenly my rage bursts from me like a wild dragon. In a second, I hit Sonic right in the face and onto the ground, my blaster aimed straight at his head.

"You got something to say?" I'm breathing so hard the words are nearly unintelligible, and spit is flying from my opened visor. My face is likely incredibly ugly with rage, but in the moment I couldn't care less. Nothing matters in this moment but me blasting that god damned hedgehog's stupid face into the ground.

"Samus, stop!" Ike yells, from a million miles away, but I don't care. My blood is boiling, my vision is clouding, and my body is shaking. Where did this ugly rage come from? I was fine two seconds ago. "I said **stop**!"

Suddenly, Ike leaps and crashes into me, effectively knocking me off of Sonic, and the two off us crash to the ground. His nose, along with the rest of his body, hit my armor hard and started to drip and eventually gush blood. He turns to me, and his face is a mixing pot of emotions. Those I can recognize look like anger, disappointment, and something like hurt. Great.

"What is wrong with you?" He stands up, clutching his nose in his hand, flailing his other hand to shake me off of him. "Sonic, are you injured?" Ike asks the blue animal sitting on the ground, cradling his cheek in his hand. Sonic looks completely shocked more than anything, but he shakes his head no. Ike sighs and turns back to me. His nose isn't bleeding anymore, and he wipes hands on his pants before offering me a hand. Now I only see concern and pity in his usually stoic expression.

I brush his hand away, and his eyebrows knit further. Not looking at any of them, I punch open the Brawl door and shut my visor, ready to kick ass.

"What's up with her lately?" I hear Pit's stupid, high voice from behind me, likely talking either to Olimar or Toon Link, but I really don't care. I'm too upset with myself right now.

We all fight for a while under Master Hand's instruction, and as I expected, my armor came off within fifteen minutes of starting the battle. After a couple hours, the only people left still in the game are Ike, Lucario, Snake, Zelda, Ice Climbers, for some reason, Yoshi, and me. Soon that changes too, because Yoshi and Ice Climbers get blown up by one of Snake's grenades, shooting them out of the arena.

"Agh!" I hear Lucario cry as Ike slices him hard with his sword, knocking the Pokemon out of the arena.

"Well, well, well," Snake says shaking his head. In an instant, he's rushing at me. I jump up onto a platform just before his fist makes contact, and I'm met with Ike's sword. I duck down to avoid the attack, but he ends up hitting me anyway.

"Gah!" I cry, flying off of the edge. Quickly, I unwrap my whip and catch the edge, saving myself just before being knocked out of the arena. I slowly raise myself back to the edge of the platform. My heart is racing with adrenaline and panic, and in that panic I release my whip prematurely. "No!" I cry, starting to fall.

And then, there he is, holding me by the wrist, the same wrist as in the kitchen, keeping me in the game for at least a little longer.

"What are you doing? That's no way to lose." He says, winking at me and pulling me up onto the platform with him, keeping his arm around me when I'm finally standing. We stare at each other for a moment, and then he pushes me forward. "Go!"

I run forward without seeing, and rush into Snake's fist. The pain registers, but just like when I run, it's like I'm watching myself in a movie. I hear a grunt escape my lips as he hits me again and again, and then with the rocket shooter. I hit the bottom of a floating platform and bounce when I hit the ground again.

"Oh, god…" I groan, wrapping my arms around myself and rising to my feet.

"Here, I'll help you." I hear Ike say, and he takes my arm. He throws me to edge and rears back, then stabs me right through the heart.

"Uh!" I grunt quietly, and I feel the sword lower, my body sliding off of it. I splutter blood all over the front of my suit as I slide from his sword fully, starting to fall out of the arena. "Ow… Ike, you asshole…" I near-whisper, clutching my throbbing wound.

Light surrounds me, and I'm on the floor of the Brawl waiting room with everyone surrounding me. Mario and Peach grab me and help me up first, and lead me to a chair to sit me down. I hear words muttered and whispered but I can't hear anything until I hear the voice of Pokemon Trainer very loud near my face.

"That was a bad one. What was Ike thinking?" It doesn't seem like he's talking to me, so I force my eyes to focus and see Lucario nodding next to him. Trainer pats me on the shoulder, I flinch at his touch, and walks back to the viewing screen.

"Oh my God, look at Sheik go!" I hear Lucas cry, shaking Ness, and I pat Peach's arm. She understands and hoists me up from under one of my shoulders. I'm a little shaky, but I can walk fine on my own, so I push her off. After all, wounds we sustain in battle don't actually hurt us, they just give the illusion of doing so, something of Master Hand's handiwork (no pun intended). I stumble to the screen, which is really kind of like a window, and put both my hands on it, and look.

Fists and feet flying at a million miles an hour, damage percentages rising like floodwater, grunts and obscenities flying. Sheik's body has become a whirlwind of black, the attire he had chosen this morning, and my eyes can barely follow his movements. All I know is that Ike and Snake were getting whooped.

Just like he did when he was fighting the Samus-clones, in one swift movement Sheik kicks both legs upwards and both Ike and Snake are rocketed straight out of the arena and into the viewing room.

"WINNER." The booming voice declares, and Sheik composes himself and strikes a graceful victory pose. In the same second, he's in the viewing room with the rest of us, still breathing hard from the fight.

"Sheik, that was awesome!" Pit cries out, breaking the silence. Suddenly, everyone is swarming him, congratulating him and patting him on the back. Voices fill the room and soon my head is spinning. I lean against the cool surface of the viewing screen and squint, my headache getting viciously worse with the extra noise and excitement.

"UGH!" A loud grunt of pain from Ike makes me turn around to face the commotion. The crowd has cleared, and it looks like Sheik punched him right in the face. My head is throbbing with intense pain, and I have to close my eyes and clutch my head. I sink to my knees.

"You fool. Look at what you did to her!" Sheik's voice is not loud, but I feel his anger vibrating the room. His fists are rapidly clenching and unclenching, and I have no doubt that his jaw is doing the same.

"She attacked Sonic! Don't make me the bad guy here!" Ike cried, rolling over on the ground to crouch in the offensive at Sheik. As if something inside him snapped, Sheik is on Ike in an instant, and the two are rolling around in a battle that _will_ leave marks.

"ENOUGH!" The booming voice of Master Hand fills the room just as he enters, and Ike and Sheik are flung to opposite walls of the room held pinned by a force I don't think anyone but the Master Hand himself understands. "WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" The two boys stay silent, and for a moment, a horrible silence fills the room, seeming to vacuum out all the air.

"They-" Star Fox starts, but that mysterious force shuts his mouth as soon as he opens it.

"THAT'S ENOUGH. GO TO YOUR QUARTERS- ALL OF YOU!" His voice booms. For one second, everyone is as still as their trophies. The next, we're all bolting for the door. I'm walking a bit slower than everyone else, still shaken from, you know, being stabbed with a long sword.

"Let me help you." A calm, low voice says as steady arms wrap themselves around my shoulder and waist. I'm too disoriented to figure out who it is, so I let my imagination wander. "I apologize for… my actions earlier."

And my imagination finally fades. I knew it was Ike, but it sure was nice to pretend.

"It was out-of-line, and I feel remorseful," The only thing on my mind right now is him shutting up. "Are you alright?"

"I'm- urk, just fine." I say, the memory of the pain ghosting over my chest. Ike lifts my arm around his neck and stands up straighter, taking more of my weight. He doesn't say anything, but he doesn't need to. I know he's sorry. Besides, he "fights for his friends", doesn't he? Oh, the irony.

We shuffle back to the room I share with Peach, and he helps me into my bed.

"Thanks, but you can leave now." I say quietly when I lay down. Ike's face seems worried, maybe sad, for a split second before his expression is stoic once again. He leaves the room without looking back or saying anything, and suddenly the thought that he might be embarrassed flickers into my mind.

I roll over and wrap the covers around myself, drowning myself in sheets. Sometimes, I just get so tired.


	4. Chapter 4

**Wow. This chapter moves fast at the end. Sorry. It's taken me forever to come up with what happens next... and I always write the chapters in one go, so it takes some build-up. Sorry for the wait.**

* * *

><p>My life passes in flashes, like I'm falling asleep and waking up in a constant loop. One minute, I'll be in the dining hall with everyone eating lunch, and the next my vision flashes and I'm fighting someone in the arena, or looking out of my window at the expanse of nothingness surrounding the Manor. It scares me to know that I have no control over myself anymore. Half of the time I don't even know what I'm doing, literally.<p>

According to Peach, I've stopped eating normally. Sometimes, I won't eat for days, and then other times I'm chatting away happily and eating normally with everyone else. That frightens me more than anything. That means the flashes could be lasting for days at a time.

My fighting in the arena has suffered too. Nearly every game we play together, I'm one of the first to go. It's just so hard to focus when there are so many other things on my mind. Sheik, my eating, my sleep schedule, Sheik, trying to pretend everything is fine when it's anything but, Sheik. Out of everything swirling around in my brain, he remains constant. And it hurts.

Every time I see him I just want to vomit. Every time I see Zelda, I want to scream at her. "_Who are you? How could you just stand there and do this to me?_" It drives me crazy. All he ever does is send me mixed signals. He always tries to help me in the arena, which makes me furious, and he's been Sheik way more often lately than he ever had in the past. It's so confusing. Is he doing this for me, or what?

I'm not the only one who noticed, either. I hear him and Link having arguments about it all the time.

_"I don't even recognize you anymore! Where's my pretty, sweet, doe-eyed girl? I'm her knight in shining armor! I don't want to protect some random GUY!"_

_ "This is a part of me! Why can't you just accept that?"_

I know I shouldn't listen, but it feels so good, so incredibly good to know that he isn't just playing with me, that he's **real**. Besides, everyone else listens too. They act like they don't, but I can see it on all of their faces whenever they talk to Zelda or Link after they've fought. Some of the Brawlers try the sympathetic route; others try to ignore the pair completely. I'm a part of the latter group.

It's almost like I don't exist anymore. The only person I ever talk to is Peach, and that's only because she makes all of the effort and we share a room together. Marth has been looking at me a lot lately, the kind of look that means he wants to talk to me but is hesitating for whatever reason, but he's so quiet I don't think he'll ever muster up the courage necessary to open his mouth and speak to me.

Snake has tried several times to make jokes or talk to me, but I usually either stare him down until he feels uncomfortable and leaves or I just act like I haven't heard him and keep walking. He stopped trying after a few days of this treatment.

Ike tries to say things to me too, but he stopped after a while just like everyone else. It's a shame too, seeing as we were so close. I remember a time when he was like a brother to me, if I had been good enough to be granted a family. That was months ago now. I'm like my own little planet. All the spaceships trying to land on the surface burn in my atmosphere before they even reach my substance.

* * *

><p>I was wrong about Marth, I guess, because he approaches me today, wearing casual clothes since it's a "free" day (and yet MH doesn't let us leave… how free are we?) and talks to me.<p>

"Hi." He says. It comes short, clipped, and awkward as hell, but I shoot him a fake smile with all the energy I can muster. He's trying so hard I guess I'd better let him have something. "So. I wanted to talk to you."

"Kay. What?" I say. I haven't spoken in weeks, so my voice is dry and quiet. I clear my throat and repeat myself. "What?"

"Well… so… how are you?"

I stare at him blankly for a few moments. Really. This kid's been staring at me for weeks now and all he has to say to me is "how are you"?

"What?"

"Well, like… like are you okay? You seem like you're different." His voice is quiet and mostly emotionless, and his face seems calm, but he seems uncomfortable in general. And suddenly the only thing I want in the world in that moment is to swallow him in a hug.

And I surprise myself, because that's exactly what I do. The second I do, I'm aware of how sharp my hips and ribs feel digging into him and I know he feels my shocking weight loss as much as I do in the moment.

"Samus…" he says in his quiet voice, and I take him by the shoulders and shove him away.

"Sorry. I don't know what that was." I say in my best calm, cool, and collected voice, just like back when things weren't so messed up. Emotions roll over me all at once and suddenly I'm drowning. I clutch my chest and jut my hand out to hold onto something for support. My hand finds Marth's shoulder and his finds my elbow, the other hand resting just above my waist.

Saying nothing, he helps me walk away from where everyone else is joking around, talking, and playing video games. He leads me into the greenhouse, one of his known favorite places. Still silent, he helps me to sit down on the ground, kneeling next to me.

And I let it all out. I tell him everything. He just sits and listens and takes it all in while I cry and gasp and sob in front of him like the mess I am. And when I'm finally done talking, I let him hold me for a while, and I feel safe in his arms. He holds me gingerly, as if he might break me if he squeezes too tight.

And then I fall asleep voluntarily for the first time in a long time.


	5. Chapter 5

Marth and I don't talk. We don't need to, really. We are each other's silent vigils. We look out for each other.

The other day, I saw her and Link sitting and watching some old Melee footage in the "Family" Room with her head on his shoulder. I was about ready to burn the whole manor down until I bumped into Marth. Angry groans were bursting through my ground teeth and I was shaking. Tears were falling faster than he could ever wipe them away.

So he took my hand and led me back to the garden. This became our meeting spot from then on. And he held me, just like he did that first time. He told me later that I gave him bruises on his shoulders from holding him so tight.

Life continued a little bit better than it had been going these past few months. Things seem more bearable now that I have someone I can vent with. As far as I know, no one knows or cares that Marth and I spend so much time together lately. It just feels… natural. Like things are the way they were when we all first started, once everything had been all sorted out.

Only now there are whispers. People are starting to wonder what the purpose of us being here is. Personally, I was allowed to remember my previous life. Compared to the heartache of this life, I almost prefer the imminent danger of my old one. But others didn't get to remember. Marth was one of those people.

We all just woke up here one day. Those were the bad days, the first few before Master Hand fixed up the manor for us. There was mold, faulty and sparking wiring, and no plumbing. The garden was nonexistent at that point. Fox also kept his memories, and told us that this happened to him in the old Smash House, and that we had to make our house beautiful ourselves. And that's what we did. Now, the manor looks lavish and lovely, and it's because of our hard work and lack of anything else to do.

I wonder about my old life sometimes. How things would have gone had I continued living that path. How smart I once was. Did I have a family? What did my mother look like? Me? Usually when these thoughts appear, I chase them away. Wondering and dwelling on those things don't help anyone, especially not me. Roy was removed from the House because he kept asking questions. I never knew him, not in this life, but I remember Peach talking about it once or twice. We try not to mention old Smashers who didn't get to return for this game.

Even though things are scary and suspicious around here, we make due with what we have: each other. Even though we're not all best friends, we're familiar, and there's a sense of community among those of us who made the Brawl cut. Sometimes things are rough, but they always work themselves out. Sooner or later, we remember that we're nothing without each other.

* * *

><p>I walk into the Family Room and sit down, looking through funny pictures from fights that Master Hand likes to take. I laugh at a particularly humorous picture that's angled so it looks like Wolf's hand is under Peach's skirt when Captain Falcon walks in and sits next to me.<p>

Captain Falcon's always had a creepy crush on me, ever since day one. He wasn't someone I liked to spend time with. He's a little close, so I scoot away. After a second, he scoots closer. I move away again, and again he follows.

"Can I help you?"

He doesn't answer, so I sigh angrily and continue surfing pictures. After a while, I feel his large, warm hand on my thigh. I put down the remote control immediately and look at him. He locks eyes with me and slides his nasty hand slowly up my leg, keeping eye contact the whole time.

"What the fuck?" I cry, slapping his hand off and standing up. He's on his feet in an instant, backing me into a wall. "Ugh!" I grunt, trying to get out from his arms trapping me, but he slams his hand into the wall and I stop. Tears threaten to slip down my face, but I hold them in. He doesn't deserve them.

"Oh, please," Falcon drawls in his stupid voice. "We all know you're shacking up with blue-haired pretty boy. Fox saw you to go into the garden together."

"So?" I say, out of breath from anxiety.

"The same garden Mario and Peach always go to. The same Link and Zelda" I flinch at her name "go to. Face it, if you weren't fucking, you wouldn't be sneaking off, would you?" I bite my lip. I had completely forgotten that the garden was where the two staple couples of the Smashers liked to go to "spend time" together. It wasn't something I liked to think about, for obvious reasons.

"Well, we're not. So get off me." I try to shove him again, but he doesn't yield. "I said get off!"

"And I said not a chance!" He roars, slamming his hand into the wall again. "Now let's see what we have here…" His slimy hand leaves the wall to cup my breast. I shut my eyes tight and hold my breath. _You're dreaming, you're dreaming, you're dreaming_…

"AGH!" I hear and suddenly his hands are off of me. I open my eyes suddenly and see that Sheik leaped at him, knocking him to the ground. The TV falls too, the screen shattering on the ground and its cords ripping out of the wall with bright sparks. They roll around on the floor, effectively knocking over a lamp and the coffee table as they do.

"Get off me, you little bitch!" Captain Falcon roars, suddenly grabbing Sheik's shirt and throwing him into the wall behind the sofa. He grunts when he hits the wall. "You fucking women… crazy, both of you." He wipes the blood from his mouth and moves towards me again.

He grabs my wrist, but before he or I can do anything, Ike and Snake burst through the door.

"Help!" I cry, and Captain powerfully backhands me. I gasp, and the world goes white and spins in my vision. I sink to the ground, Captain Falcon's hand no longer holding me up. I clutch my pounding head and feel someone touching my back. Instinctively, I thrash and try to shake them off, but after a few seconds I hear,

"Samus! Samus, it's Marth!" I stop thrashing and fall into his arms. "I'm here, I'm here!" He says over and over into my ear. I don't sob, but the tears fall out of me like dripping water from a broken faucet. "What happened?" He addresses Snake and Ike, but it's Sheik who answers.

"He felt her up, that mother fucker. He molested her." He spits furiously, attempting to staunch the blood flowing angrily from his nose and all over his clothes. I notice in my peripheral vision that's he favoring his right leg and holding his arm in his hand.

"Oh my god…" I hear Snake mutter, sitting down and holding his head in his hands on the sofa.

Marth's grip on me tightens protectively, and Ike slams Captain Falcon, who had been restrained in his arms previously, into the ground, not bothering to avoid the broken glass littering the floor.

"RELEASE HIM, IKE." Master Hand's voice fills the room a split second before he floats in. "LET ME DEAL WITH HIM. ALL OF YOU GET OUT. NOW." The rest of us rise and help each other out the door. Still in shock, I find myself even incapable of walking properly, and my mouth keeps opening and closing, like a fish.

"Are you going to be okay?" Marth lets me stand on my own and cups my face in his hands. I let my eyes flicker to Sheik for the shortest second, but he understands. Sheik looks like he has something to say, and I'm certain he doesn't want the other guys to hear it.

"Ike, Snake, let's go." Marth says, waving at Snake and placing his hand gingerly on Ike's shoulder. Snake starts to protest, but Marth gives him a look letting him know that now was not the time. The three turn the corner, and Sheik and I are left alone.

Neither of us say anything at first. His breathing tells me he must be in pain, but he makes no effort to leave and tend to his wounds. I give him time to recover and gather himself to speak to me.

"I… I'm sorry. I wish I was strong enough…" He starts, but he groans and shrinks to the floor, clutching his side. I'm next to him in an instant.

"Come on, I'll help you." I say, using my cool-calm-collected mask so as not to make it seem like even the thought of touching him sends my heart into a flurry, which of course it does.

"No… I should be helping you… If I was just stronger… ugh!" He tries and fails to stand, and this time I catch him. Putting his arm over my shoulder, I help him shuffle down the hall and into our unofficial infirmary. I sit him down in a chair, and he slumps instantly.

"Take off your shirt." I say quietly, flying around the room, taking out various supplies like gauze, ointment, painkillers, and tape. My heart is beating faster than a hummingbird's, surely. I turn back to face him with hands full of supplies, and see that his shirt is still on. "I need to wrap you up…"

"I know," he interrupts me. "But, I… I…" he blushes and I nod. Setting the supplies on the desk, I kneel and help him to remove his hat and mask. Gingerly, I lift his arms and help him shimmy out of his shirt. What I find underneath surprises me, though I hide my emotions from him.

His chest looks like any other guy's would. How? The thought perplexes me before I shake it off and throw his bloody clothes into the garbage. I walk back and kneel in front of him again.

"Tell me where it hurts." I've worked hard to avoid his gaze up until now, but I can't take it anymore and look into his eyes. The deep red holds more emotions than I will probably ever know in my life. His arm moves slowly to point to his left forearm. I apply the soothing ointment, and instantly his posture becomes less tense.

I wrap the appendage with gauze and tape it off. "Where else?"

He points to his ribcage, and I place my hands on his torso. His skin is hot, and he flinches, so I pull my hands away.

"You're cold." He says, and I wince. I'm so stupid. I stand up and run my freezing fingers under hot water for a while. When I touch his skin to check for breaks again this time, he relaxes. "That's better."

All of his ribs seem intact, so I put some of the ointment on him again. We stare into each other's eyes the entire time I'm rubbing it in, and the tension is starting to become unbearable. Before I do something I'll regret, I stop and wrap his abdomen with gauze and tape it, just like his arm.

"Where else?" The question comes out in a whisper. Even though we aren't even doing anything, the moment feels too intimate to interrupt with loud speech. He points to his face this time.

Wetting some paper towel, I tenderly dab at the dried blood all over his face. He moans and flinches in pain, but I keep cleaning his face. Every time he moans, I feel my heart pick up. My face is probably as red as a Maxim Tomato by this point, but I try to keep focused on cleaning Sheik's throbbing face.

"I obviously can't wrap your face, so I'm just going to put the ointment on under some bandages on the biggest cuts, okay?" I say, reaching for the box of Band-Aids. He nods slowly and groans again, causing me to almost drop the box.

I almost don't want to put any salve on his cuts, but I know how well this stuff works, and how quickly too, so I dab some on his nose, the cut on his chin and eyebrow, and just under his eye, placing bandages on each spot. It was nice, tending to his wounds like this. Subtract the blood, and it was almost romantic. We were definitely bonding if nothing else.

"Okay. How do you feel?" I ask, still kneeling and gently placing my hands on his knees. I hand him a little paper cup of water and four painkillers. He'll need them. "Anything else hurting?" He nods, and I tilt my head in a questioning gesture.

"My pride." He says quietly after taking his pills, placing a hand over his heart. Shocked, I have nothing to say, and my mouth hangs open like an idiot. "I wish I could be strong like the other guys."

"What are you talking about? You're one of the best fighters we have!" I say quickly, patting his leg a little bit to reassure him.

"If I had just been stronger, I could have protected you from…" He starts to quake with anger, so I grasp his shoulders and squeeze. His hands are doing that rapid clenching-unclenching thing again, and I'm worried he might punch the wall or something.

"It's okay, it's okay. I'm fine, see?" I say, touching his face and raising his chin to look at me. His eyes are brimming with anger, sadness, and ultimately self-resentment. He clenches his jaw before he speaks again.

"If I ever see him touch you like that again…" An angry tear slips down his cheek, and my heart flutters at what I'm about to do. I lean in slowly, pause, then kiss his cheek, wiping his tear. His eyes close and he sighs, but I can't tell if I've made a mistake yet. "Is your face okay?"

The second he mentions it, my left cheek starts to throb and ache horribly. I wince, and touch my hand to my face softly. He scoots off of the chair so he's kneeling and the ground to. His eyes are still watering, and before I know it his arms are around me. Without thinking, I hug back, burying my face into his neck.

"There's… something I have to say." I take a deep breath. "I love you."

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><p><strong>Who loves who? Who said what? I'm a bitch for leaving you with a cliffhanger, but OOH DAMN. I almost didn't want to add this chapter. Captain Falcon is always a rapist, and I hate cliches, but I needed something for Sheik to be honest about how he feels about his whole... manly situation. Eh. Whatever. Let me know what you think.<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

My heart is fluttering in my chest so rapidly I barely hear the voice. He pulls away from my embrace and holds me in front of him by my shoulders. My eyelids are heavy and I'm hardly breathing, but Sheik looks very focused.

Sheik and I look at each other briefly for another moment before directing our attention to the source of the voice. I rise and quickly but quietly go to the door and open it. Sheik is right behind me, but I barely notice. My mouth is hanging open with disbelief and something like betrayal.

"Is that…?" He trails off, and I breathe quietly, nodding.

Marth is standing in front of Ike in the hallway, and the two clearly believe they are alone. Tears are in Marth's eyes, and there's a definite danger of them spilling over at any second. His shoulders are up to his ears and his fists are clenched at his sides so tightly his knuckles are white. Ike has a look of bewilderment on his face, his arms seeming ready for something at his sides.

"Say something!" Marth demands pathetically, his voice cracking on the second word. I'm suddenly overcome with the feeling that this is something perversely private that Sheik and I should not be looking at, but he's still directly behind me and attempting to move now would certainly draw attention to us.

"I… what would you like me to say, Marth?" Ike says, shifting his weight and holding up his arms in an exasperated manner. He sighs and rubs his temples with one hand, a gesture that makes me feel like he must be very conflicted. After what seems like half an hour of all of us just standing there, but is surely more like seconds, he speaks. "I'm sorry but… I admire another."

Marth places a hand to his chest and his knees bend, about to collapse.

"Okay. Thank you." He chokes through his inevitable sobs, and suddenly he dashes past Ike, not before hitting him in the shoulder, and tears down the hallway. Ike hits the wall, but in an instant he's chasing after Marth.

"No, wait!"

The silence after he's gone is shocking. I feel Sheik move away from me, so I step back from the door and turn to face him. His eyebrows are knitted and he looks deep in thought. Shock is swimming inside of me, and I suddenly feel dizzy, so I sit down in the seat Sheik previously occupied. The two of us remain quiet for another minute.

"He didn't even tell me. He's my best friend and he didn't even tell me." The words leave my mouth without me even feeling them. It's as if I'm in a dream.

"Hey, hey. It's okay." Sheik is kneeling in front of me nearly instantly, his hand on my face. I lean into his touch.

"I thought he trusted me. Why wouldn't he tell me something that important?" As exhausted as I am, I barely feel anything other than intense shock and disbelief. This whole day has been a nightmare I can't wake up from and yet all I really want to do is go to sleep.

"Are you alright, Samus? Samus?" Sheik's voice sounds cloudy, and my vision is slowly becoming similarly clouded. I feel myself groan, and as if in slow motion, I begin to fall out of the chair sideways. "Samus!"

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><p>When I come to, I bolt upright in a room that is not mine. The interior is foreign to me, and because of training from my past life, I'm out of the bed in an instant and my ear is at the door. Outside of the room, I hear people talking.<p>

"This has been going on for months and _months_ now, sir. She isn't eating, she's not sleeping right, she's an emotional wreck and now something like this happens? If we ignore her condition for any longer, I don't know what will happen, and I'm scared." The door slightly muffles the sound, so it's difficult for me to discern whose voice it is that is speaking. All I can tell is that it's a young man and he's very worried.

"I UNDERSTAND. DO NOT THINK I HAVE NOT NOTICED HER DETERIORATION, BOY, AND DO NOT THINK FOR AN INSTANT I DO NOT KNOW THE CAUSE." Master Hand's voice is as penetrating and low as ever, and the ominous feeling I sometimes get when he speaks washes over me. I shiver, and realize I'm in my pajamas.

"I beg your pardon?" The young man's voice questions, and I feel the power of Master Hand's response before he says a word.

"DO NOT PLAY GAMES WITH THIS GIRL. YOU SEE WHAT YOUR ACTIONS HAVE DONE?" A stony silence fills the air, and I almost want to fling the door open and see whom he is speaking to. I restrain myself, but press closer against the wood of the door. "I DO NOT LIKE THAT YOU SMASHERS DEVELOP RELATIONSHIPS, BUT IT IS AN INEVITABILITY. JUST PROMISE ME YOU WILL STOP THIS NONSENSE BEFORE IT GETS OUT OF ANY OF OUR CONTROL, UNDERSTAND?"

"Yes sir." The boy's voice is so quiet I can barely hear it, but I feel him approach the door. Leaping onto the bed, I pull the covers over myself and shut my eyes just in time, nearly hitting the headboard with the crown of my head. The door swings open, and the boy walks over to my bedside, pulling the chair from the desk on the wall over so he may sit in it.

Nothing happens for quite a while, but after perhaps fifteen minutes, I feel his hand start to touch my hair, brushing it with his fingers. I feel my mind racing almost as fast as my beating heart. Who are you? I shout in my mind. Marth? Ike? (I tell myself not to think it, but I do anyway) Or… Sheik? I almost begin to pretend that I've woken up when he speaks.

"I'm sorry. I know it isn't right of me to lead you on, but I just… I feel so trapped. I'm not even sure who I am anymore. All I am sure of is…" I almost stop breathing. I know that voice. I _know_ that voice. Gentle, quiet and yet still powerful, a bit higher than a normal guy's… "… is that I like you, Samus."

A truck has just hit me. A thousand of Pit's stupid arrows have been shot through my heart. I've just been sucker-punched. Ike stabbed me with that stupid sword again. A million Smash balls are bursting in my mind. Emotions are spilling and exploding inside of me like an angry river, and yet my face remains as still and stoic as an angel.

"I wish I had the courage to tell you when you aren't asleep. It's like… the balance of everything depends on me being Zelda, on me being a girl and being with Link. But I don't know if that's what I want anymore and I'm not sure what I can do to change it. The second I do, I swear to you that you will know my true feelings." His voice contains emotions I had not previously known him capable of. I feel his breath on my face as he leans to my ear, and my heart swells.

"Find me when you wake."


	7. Chapter 7

**WOW. I am the worst person ever. I'm so sorry I haven't updated this regularly. I am seriously the worst. Thank you everyone for reviews and for reading. I don't deserve you ;_;**

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><p>I don't find him when I wake, because I already am awake. It doesn't feel real, though. It was as if I have stumbled into some confusing nightmare where I don't understand anything and can't make up my mind, except it isn't a nightmare and I have to deal with all the confusion rather than getting to wake up and forget it all.<p>

After he leaves, I lay in the strange room, eyes on the ceiling, for another hour or so. I tell myself it's so I can calm down, asses the situation, and adjust my priorities, but really I can't bring myself to do any of that properly. Instead, I stare at the ceiling and remember Sheik's delicate fingers at my hairline, his hot breath on my face, his body hovering just above mine. Remembering his touch and his scent and his very essence feels like the only thing keeping me alive, like any second I'll fall backwards into nothingness, and these are the hands that pull me back from the edge; the golden memories I have with him.

_There's something wrong with me_. The thought comes without warning, without precedence, but I can't push it out of my mind. There's always been something wrong with me. It didn't start with him. What would make you think that it will end with him? The thoughts swarm in my head like angry hornets, but I can't deny them. Everything is true. I am deflated. I am empty. I am depressed.

So. That's what it is. That's what it always had been. I guess I never really acknowledged it before, but here we are. The last six months have been the worst of my life. A struggle every morning even to get out of bed, let alone deal with eating and socializing and fighting. It was too much for me to handle. It is too much for me to handle, and I hate it. I don't want to be weak like this. I don't remember anything before Brawl, but I know in my heart I used to be strong. What happened to the old me? Who is this skinny, weak, pitiful person in her place?

And now, I understand. I understand everything about the way Sheik feels. The two of us are both caught in a full-on identity crisis, and neither of us is coping very well, although I am admittedly doing much worse.

So I decide to try. I roll out of the unfamiliar bed that Master Hand (and whoever else helped me after I collapsed) put me in and crawl to the door, feeling more tired than ever. But I won't let myself do this without dignity, without looking like I really am trying, so I push myself to my feet and shuffle to the door of the small room. I'm still in my oversized sleeping shirt, but it covers everything that needs covering and I'm not sure what happened to my suit, so I skip trying to look for other clothes and head out into the hallway.

The room was just down the hall from the kitchen, so I decide that will be my first stop. My sudden and intense thirst only affirms my decision, and I walk a little faster. I make it to the kitchen, but no one is in it. I pour myself a tall glass of ice water and sip it calmly, standing in the middle of the room.

It feels nice, it suddenly occurs to me. I feel nice because I know that I'm trying. I don't feel better in the grand scheme of things, but knowing that I have the potential to have power over this is making this dark blanket of sadness feel like an electric one. It isn't yet a light in the dark, but more like a shift in atmosphere, like a sudden change of temperature.

_He picked me_. The thought sets my ears ablaze and ties my stomach in knots. _He isn't sure and he's scared, but he picked _me.

I laugh. For no reason, I tilt my head back and let the laughter pour out of me like I'd never laughed before in my life. I have to set my drink down for fear of spilling it I'm laughing so hard. Just as I crouch over, I see Ike enter the room out of the corner of my eye.

"Samus? What's so funny?" Even though I know he'll think I'm absolutely crazy, I can't bring myself to calm down. I'm gasping for air and tears are streaming down my face, but I'm just so manic and happy that I can't stop. Ike laughs nervously with me. "Are you okay?"

I manage to nod, and after a while Ike starts laughing too. We fall to the floor and sit, leaning up against the island counter and just laughing and laughing and laughing.

Eventually, we stop, wiping the tears from our eyes and massaging our sore stomachs. The minute I stop giggling, I shift my body to face Ike more, and he does the same.

"What was that about?"

"Is everything okay with you and Marth?"

We ask the questions at the same time, and his amused expression immediately drops into one of suspicion.

"How do you know of that?" It hurts to look t his face, because I know more than anything it's hurt that I see, not anger. Still, it feels good to tell the truth. It won't be obvious to him until later, but my honesty now is what will make us better friends in the future. It feels nice to connect with someone.

"I didn't mean to overhear. I was treating Sheik's wounds in the bathroom and we just heard you. Is everything okay?"

Ike's expression softens and a sad little smile creeps onto his face.

"I feel like a fool. I should have known his true feelings for me from the start, but I was too blind to see it. I know I've hurt him terribly, and that sickens me." His expression grows continually grimmer. We shift around on the ground more so that the two of us are sitting facing each other. I move because the overwhelming sense of urgency his sadness gives me motivates some kind of action, and he probably just to be polite. "What's worse is that I can't return his affections."

"Are you not… do you not…?" I trail off, knowing that Ike will understand my question.

"It's not that. I just…" His eyes meet mine, and my stomach drops. _Oh no_. He leans closer to me. "There is someone else I admire…" My pulse races, but my mind is whirring faster. Ike's face is mere millimeters away, and his breath smells of cinnamon. The urge to close the distance between us is hard to ignore, but his hot breath on my face reminds me of Sheik.

He snakes his arm around my waist, pulling us both to our knees, and kisses me. He's very warm, but the kiss only lasts for a second before I make a noise of protest and push him away. _So much for making friends_.

"Wait. I can't." I say, flattening my hands on his chest. He furrows his brows, arms still around me. The tiled floor is beginning to hurt my knees. "I'm sorry, Ike, but Marth is my best friend. I can't do this to him. Plus, there's… someone else."

His hands fall away form me, but gently, as if he were just holding something very fragile and wanted to set it down without breaking it. Surprising both of us, he smiles.

"So… then should I…?"

"Uh, yes. But wait a while. If you tell him what happened, he'll feel like a second choice, and if that happens I will hurt you." I struggle to form the idea, shock muddling my mind. What is going on? Shouldn't he be more upset? I decide the best thing to do is just act normal too. Why not? This incident does nothing directly to my happiness level. I should let Ike deal with it however he needs to.

"I should go. But before I do… one last kiss?" He smiles his wicked smile and I roll my eyes, giving him a peck on the cheek.

"There's your kiss. Now get out of here and leave me to my water."

Ike rises, offering me a hand. I accept his help, seeing as my knees are probably bruised now. I pick up my glass as he leaves the room, smiling to myself. _What a stupid thing to be happy about_, I think to myself. _The guy your best friend has a crush on just made out with you and then was totally cool with it when you rejected him_. In all fairness, though, that's a pretty sweet deal. Nobody is hurt by that.

The smile slides off my face when I see Sheik walk in.


End file.
